Sanctioned Slavery in the United States of America

Quote (it’s a sad state of affairs that life has thrown me from a $60,000 a year job pre-9/11 to being unable to find work I can do post-9/11,
competing as I am with 20-somethings in this tight economy)

Life has not thrown you from 60,000 annually to unemployment. You have thrown you to our mercy. Apparently you have not had enough "Work
Experience". It is up to each individual to constantly educate and train themselves to ensure that during times of crisis, they will always be of
some value that is higher than what social services or welfare values you. I am 41. I have never been unemployed unless I chose to be unemployed.
My "work experience" is very broad, yet, I have taken the time to educate my self and perfect each my trades and skills.

During the 9/11 fiasco, I was in home improvements. It wasn't long afterwards I phased my self out of that and fell back into one of my other, more
valuable skills, albeit, more sacrifice in the way of less family time. But guess what, we pulled through just fine. When I moved out of state, I
found work very fast (low-paying), and we were on food stamps for 5 months, during which, I was at the library daily, educating my self and constantly
looking for a place that had a need for my abilities. I always found them because I refuse to have the tax-payers as the breadwinner of my
household.

So get crack'in! don't sit around feeling sorry for yourself or laying blame on circumstance, do something about it. Like the old song "La Bamba",
"I'm not the Sailor, I'm the Captain, I'm the Captain, I'm the Captain" (English translation). Now go to the wheel-house and put it in full steam
ahead...

Originally posted by lpowell0627
Part of the reason is that people now think a minimum standard of living includes a car, flat-screen TV, satellite cable channels, DVR, cell phone for
every family member, McMansion, etc.

It's ridiculous.

I have no car, cable or DVR. I count myself luck to have cell (free phone + 68 minutes free a month from Safelink Wireless), and am quite grateful
that though my place is small, I have a roof over my head. My computer is from before things disolved around me, and I sleep on a box spring being
thankful I found enough foam pads to make it bearable. I am not asking for more than this.

But I am standing, proud to be human and of value as such, and demanding that I be respected as such, not having this small amount I have taken away
unless I work as a slave. It is an issue of human dignity.

I guess what I'm trying to say here is that what we want in life is irrelevant to the question of whether it is right to demand work from me at
prison wages at best. It is an unethical use of us who are human.

It is, quite possible, to raise a family, put a roof over your head, and food on the table working at an actual job, not government checks,
making minimum wage for a normal work week of 40 hours. You won't have a luxury car, you won't have an in-home entertainment room, but you will
have a roof and food.

Great! Get me that job, then. As long as it's something I am capable of and pays minimum wage, I'll do it. Problem is, I can't seem to get it.
Try as I might, it ain't happening. Now what? Resign myself to the slavery?

Further, the bottom line is that you can not call something you aren't even working for slave labor.

Um... At my last assignment I scrubbed toilets and showers, vacuumed, made beds, washed linnens, made 40 bag lunches when I couldn't get a donor
scheduled to bring them, created a database of bag lunch donors, as well as a spreadsheet for monthly reporting, made coffee, put out snacks,
organized the cupboards, mopped the floors, wiped down everything, put away food donations, and on and on. 18 hours of my week were spent doing this
for $580 a month, $325 of which was rent (incl. util.), and $200 was for food stamps, leaving $55 to buy everything else. (Yes, I have stolen toilet
paper because I needed and did not have.)

So I think I can call it working. And, yes, much more than 18 hours of that for $580 and we're very much into slave labor.

I'm not even sure how not working but getting a check anyway amounts to any kind of labor at all, let alone calling oneself a
slave.

I'm gonna chalk this remark as coming from being unclear on the concept...

Lastly, you have a choice. Everyone has a choice. You may not like the choices available, but they are choices nonetheless.

Next time the government wants to give you taxpayer money I would recommend turning it down. You certainly can't be enslaved if you break the chains
holding you down.

[smile] Let's see. My choices were to not reach out for help and living in the alleys of mid-winter NY State, or going to the Department of Social
Services to get approval to stay in the Red Cross shelter (DSS had to approve anyone staying at the shelter) - which would only be given if I went on
services - and then they could demand I expend 35 hours of my life as they saw fit. For $580 a month to live on. (Ask me about my favorite food
pantry...).

Those were my choices. So, you explain how you would have figured in that situation. What would you have done?

Originally posted by Submarines
I never utilized any kind of social services or took unemployment (even though I have paid into it.)

There are no jobs out there. I have to laugh when someone says there are no jobs. Look at the classifieds, there are tons of jobs available. There
was an employer on a local radio show here in Cleveland last week that said the he was unable to get people to work for him for 2 reasons:

1. Because you can collect benefits for up to 2 years now, so people wont work until the benefits run out.

2. Because they don't like the job that is being offered. Whether it is landscaping, cutting grass, digging ditches, or working at McDonalds.

BTW, I'm 47 grey and fat!

[edit on 9/7/2010 by Submarines]

Are you arthitic, too? Disabled? I can't do landscaping, cutting grass, digging ditches or standing the prolonged hours working at McDonalds (a
corporation I loathe). But I'm a bat out of hell when it comes to desk jobs. And just because there are jobs, does not mean there is no
competition. And for desk jobs, the younger one will always be chosen over the older one.

Originally posted by subject x
Sure, the wages suck. We all deserve to make at least "minimum wage", preferably more.

However, slavery it is not, due to one major factor.

You can quit. Any time.

Slaves do not enjoy that option. They have to stay and work. They get beaten or worse if they try to leave. Not so with your situation. You may need
the money, and I know that decent jobs are scarce now, but you can still quit. Just walk out. They won't flog you. Honest.

Consider what it actually means to be a slave before complaining that you are treated like one.

I can can I? I can go live in the alleys in winter, scrounge the dumpsters, I suppose. That what I should choose rather than being ensured that I
will not die of exposure? That's the option if I quit Social Services. And I have to be on Social Services to have shelter, Red Cross or
otherwise.

I do not accept being taken advantage of because I was laid off and cannot find a job to replace that one I had. As I said, I will work for minimum
wage, but expecting more of my time than that because I'm THIS poor, is based in fascism.

Well as someone who has to manage WEX, or work experience workers, you are lookign at it the wrong way.

First off, to pay you minimum wage would simply be giving you a job, not just experience. Then you would have no need to go looking for a job
elsewhere.

Oh, you gotta be kidding me. I would MUCH rather live on $580 a month than the conceivably $60,000 a year I might get - if I could find the right job
- and even the $10-$13 I could get for most office jobs. Yeah, there's no incentive to look. I LIKE having to steal toilet paper.

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